**Hungary Seeks US Sanctions Exemption for Russian Gas Payments**
The Hungarian government has asked the United States to grant an exemption from sanctions on Gazprombank, a Russian bank that handles payments for natural gas imports. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto made the request on December 4.
The US had previously refrained from targeting Gazprombank to allow European countries to pay for Russian gas supplies. However, new sanctions were introduced in November, making it harder for Russia to evade US sanctions and fund its military.
Hungary is one of several EU countries that rely heavily on Russian natural gas, which is paid through Gazprombank. The country receives around 4.5 billion cubic meters of Russian gas per year under a 15-year deal signed in 2021.
Szijjarto said that the sanctions marked an “attack on our sovereignty” and posed a threat to energy security. Hungary’s request for a sanctions exemption comes as Turkey has been negotiating with the US for its own waiver.
**Ukraine and Russia**
In other news, Ukrainian authorities have detained the leader of the opposition party Coalition for Change, Nika Gvaramia, amid government crackdowns on pro-EU protests in the country. A delegation from Ukraine met with incoming US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Ukraine peace envoy Keith Kellogg to discuss further support for Ukraine.
The UK‘s National Crime Agency has dismantled a multibillion-dollar money laundering scheme that allowed Russian spies and oligarchs to evade sanctions using cryptocurrency. Ukrainian children have been abducted from Russian-occupied territories, with at least 20,000 sent to other Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine or to Russia itself since February 2022.
As Ukraine faces another winter with rolling blackouts and freezing temperatures, businesses are looking for alternative fuel sources during power cuts. President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused the Georgian authorities of pushing the country into dependence on Russia.
**Global Developments**
A drone attack hit a special police regiment building in Grozny, Chechnya, on December 4. The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken described Ukraine’s mobilization as “critical” for repelling Russian aggression.
Russia is storming the Kherson direction in an attempt to gain control over islands in the Dnipro River delta, while Ukraine’s gas transit network could soon come under attack, warned Dmytro Lyppa, CEO of the Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine.
NATO countries will provide air defenses necessary to protect Ukrainian infrastructure, but there is no surplus of such systems, Secretary General Mark Rutte said.